The Hero Arrives

On guard at the entrance in preparation for the dungeon's transition phase that shouldn't actually be happening. Truly pointless.

That said, only dungeon-related personnel knew that fact. The Adventurer Guild was very seriously constructing barricades, restricting dungeon entry while maintaining lookouts at the entrance and conducting investigations inside the dungeon.

Although they were rotating in small numbers, a decent number of capable adventurers were staying at the inn to be ready for any emergencies, which meant increased income for me. I was pretty happy about that.

And so today, I was once again on lookout duty at the entrance with the C-Rank adventurer Gozoh. We're completely used to this by now.

"Something that's changed… it's just that jellies have started appearing, right? Isn't that fine?"

"Kehma, even jellies that are normally ignored monsters are a big deal when they suddenly start appearing in a dungeon, you know?"

"… Hey Gozoh. Can I go to sleep?"

"No way, Kehma. You're only C-Rank for this dungeon specifically, remember? If things change, your C-Rank could get revoked. Keep watch properly."

I know, right? But knowing what's really going on behind the scenes, I just can't muster any tension. I already know there's no need to be on edge.

"Speaking of which, what happened with the smithy?"

"Kantra? He should be up and running soon. Those eggshells you gave him were apparently quite the rare material."

"… Oh, is that so? Well, I originally got them from Haku-san, so…"

Phoenix eggshells really do have excellent fire resistance after all. It'd be a hassle if I got asked where I got them, so I'll just pin this on Haku-san too. Gozoh seemed convinced, saying "An A-Rank adventurer… as expected."

Oh, we also made an all-phoenix-eggshell oven at our place, just for fun. It ended up being needlessly high-performance, and Kinue-san, our housework-loving silky girl, was delighted. She said you could roast meat to juicy perfection with just a little flame. It apparently scorches the instant you let your guard down, but she was excited, saying that's what made it a real test of skill.

"Then once the furnace is ready, maybe I'll have him make a kitchen knife. For Kinue-san's personal use."

"Oh? A present for that pretty light-green-haired Nee-chan! I was sure Kehma only had a thing for little girls, but turns out you're into fully grown women too! Gahaha!"

How rude. I have a foot fetish, but I'm not a lolicon. A foot fetish, I say. I'm a proper gentleman who doesn't abuse his master authority to demand stockings. All three of those girls' feet look deliciou… ahem. They're nicely shaped, so if I weren't a gentleman, things would've gotten serious by now.

"That Nee-chan's the one who cooks for the inn, right? Making a knife for a cook who can make food that delicious? Kantra would definitely get fired up about it."

"I hope so. Ah, how much do kitchen knives cost? Can I afford one?"

"Bring him one iron golem and he'd make one no problem. I could even help you out, you know? You'd owe me one though. Specifically, start stocking booze at the inn."

"You want to drink that badly… Drunks cause too many problems. I don't want to deal with them at the inn. Get the guild to build a bar."

"Even if they started building one now, who knows when I'd actually get to drink. How many days does it even take to build a bar?"

"Ahh, then I'll ask the mage who built the inn overnight to build a bar too. It'll cost money though."

"… Oh yeah, it did get expanded before anyone noticed. That was one of [Cave of Desires]' Seven Mysteries, you know."

What's this about Seven Mysteries? This is the first I've heard of it.

"Hm? You didn't know? You're one of them too, as [The Adventurer Who Stays Long-Term Without Working]."

"Hey, what are the other five?"

"Besides [The Inn That Expanded Overnight] and [The Non-Working Adventurer], there's [The Power Spot Favored by an A-Rank Adventurer], [The Little Girl Owner], [The Hot Spring Feels Amazing], and also [The Illusory S-Rank Meal] and [The Hardworking Golems] I think?"

All seven mysteries are about our inn! And [The Hot Spring Feels Amazing] isn't even a mystery, it's just an impression!

"Also Kehma, I heard that little girl owner sneaks into your room at night all the time? There's even a rumor that you're freeloading long-term because you're the little girl owner's kept man."

"Hey, don't say scary things like that, Haku-san would kill me. That's absolutely not true!"

"Hmm? But Kehma, you're a man too, don't you have… urges building up?"

"Unfortunately for you, I specialize in the desire for sleep."

Actually, maybe it's because I became a Dungeon Master, but I don't really get in the mood for that stuff anymore. Especially since around the time Ichika joined, I think? Before that, I was desperately holding back from getting aroused by Rokuko and Niku's feet. Well, I still end up following them with my eyes though.

At this rate, if I can conquer my appetite too, I'll surely be able to spend my days doing nothing but lazing around.

"Ah, come to think of it, there's that dog-eared Jou-chan too… so no worries on that front then?"

"Right, right, no worries since Niku's around."

I'm not some pervert who gets aroused in front of a little girl. As long as Niku is keeping watch, there's no way I'd turn into a pervert. So there's nothing to worry about.

"No, but isn't that a pretty big burden on the dog-eared Jou-chan?"

"She sulks if we don't sleep together, so I don't think she minds."

"… I see, she's really attached to you then. Take good care of her, alright?"

"Of course."

While having such conversations, we continued keeping watch for monsters that would never appear.

Even just sitting around on lookout duty, it's surprisingly tiring. When work was over, I'd return to my room and go straight to sleep. That kind of routine continued for a while.

And today, that came to an end. After a week of vigilance with no changes, they concluded it was probably safe, and the entry restrictions were lifted.

"… Hah, finally I can take it easy and rest…"

I returned to my room at the inn. Surrendering to fatigue, I collapsed onto my futon… Ahhhh, now let's sleep.

Oh, [Purify] first… yep, magic sure is convenient.

"Kehma, my dungeon is done!"

"Oooh, can it wait until after I sleep?"

"… Sleep or my dungeon, which is more important to you?!"

"Sleep… Sleep!"

"Guh, you said it twice?! Hmph, fine, I'll show you tomorrow then. You'll be amazed!"

Obviously. Sleep is one of humanity's three great desires. Of course it's more important.

Sleep! I'm going! To! Sleeeep! … Zzz.

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

The next morning, Rokuko threw open my door with a bang! and burst into my room.

"Kehma, it's morning! Wake up!"

"Morning huh… time to sleep then… zzz"

"Humans are supposed to wake up in the morning! Wait, that's not the point. The hero's here, the hero!"

"The hero huh… Okay, I get it, I'll wake up. So just five more minutes…"

"Wake up already?! The hero's here, I'm telling you! He went to the Adventurer Guild branch office for now, but he'll be over here any minute!"

Rokuko slapped me repeatedly through the comforter. It didn't hurt, but it was annoying.

Can't be helped, guess I'll get up… sounds like the hero is here after all.

"Fuaaah, haah, can't be helped. So, the hero huh. Let me see."

I opened the map and looked at the Adventurer Guild branch office. Checking the DP income… a whopping 1,000 DP per day. So this is a hero, huh. A completely different order of magnitude. Making me want him to stay longer even though I want him gone quickly. What an unfair guy.

"… So, what do we do?"

"Nothing we can do about it. When he comes to the inn, we just do our regular inn work. Same as always."

I opened a monitor from the floating menu in the air to check the hero's appearance.

A man with short black hair. Asian by the looks of it, probably Japanese. Three years since he was summoned to this other world, making him quite the veteran compared to me… Still, since I could tell he was Japanese just by looking, he'd probably realize I'm Japanese just as easily if he saw me.

"I should avoid meeting him if possible, so I'll be sleeping in my room. Just treat him the same as any other adventurer… Say the meal recipes and the card game rules came from things left behind by past heroes, provided by Haku-san, and that Kinue-san did the cooking. That's all. I'm going to sleep. Rokuko, I leave the rest to you."

"U-understood. Basically same as usual, right? Leave it to me!"

Rokuko hurried out of the room… Good, time for a second sleep.

Then, just as I started dozing off in my futon, Rokuko burst into my room again with a bang!

"It's an emergency, Kehma! The hero wants to stay in the suite! And he wants the A-Rank meal!"

"… The suite was supposed to be reserved for Haku-san, but, well, as an inn we can't refuse a paying guest… The kid's meal… yeah, sure, fine. Just serve it as is."

"Got it. But we don't have to eat together with him, right? That's a service reserved for Haku-neesama."

"Mm, right. Well then, I'll be sleeping in my room to avoid meeting the hero."

Seeing Rokuko off, I lay down again. Now for a proper second sleep.

Then, just as I started dozing off in my futon, Rokuko yet again burst into my room with a KABOOM, destroying the door!

"I-it's an emergency, Kehma!"

"Hey, the door. Hey. Don't kick down my door. I'm the one who has to fix it."

"You can fix it right away anyway!"

"Well, I can, but… So, what is it? Has something come up that only I can deal with?"

As I got out of my futon and asked Rokuko while fixing the door, her face turned bright red as if she'd just remembered something. Standing pigeon-toed with downcast eyes, she fidgeted and said:

"The hero… p-p-p-proposed to me! Wh-what should I do, Kehma?"

… Huh?